


Soshite, Harukaze ni Sasayaite ~And So, Whisper to the Spring Breeze~

by koinuchan81



Series: Takumi-kun Series Perfect Edition vol.1 [4]
Category: Takumi-kun Series
Genre: BL, Boys' Love, Gii is protective, Light Novel, M/M, Takabayashi is a little shit, Toshihisa is a good friend, only a couple of smooches so far though, original by Gotoh Shinobu, plot is the first half of the first movie, so is Shouzou, the get-together bit of the story, translation of the Japanese novel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:40:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23852470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/koinuchan81/pseuds/koinuchan81
Summary: The first day back to school for their second year, and rumors and jealousy abound. And Takumi's new roommate is Gii, of all people. How on earth will he get through the year peacefully?Hint: It's the first part of the first movie. Can you spot the differences?
Relationships: Hayama Takumi/Saki Giichi
Series: Takumi-kun Series Perfect Edition vol.1 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1124238
Kudos: 5





	Soshite, Harukaze ni Sasayaite ~And So, Whisper to the Spring Breeze~

**Author's Note:**

> *Note: This story, like others where the narrator is Takumi, is written in first person, unlike the other stories in the series which focus on other characters, which are in second person. Also, I’ve changed the present tense from my original translation to standard past tense because I find present tense awkward. Enjoy!

April, clear, Sunday.

I was in a halfway good mood.

"Moving into the dorms on a Sunday is such a disgrace."

The ground was blanketed in the same pale pink petals that were dancing around us as I followed slightly behind the tall figure of Katakura Toshihisa as he meandered from the bus stop labeled 'Shidou Academy Entrance', down the long, cherry tree lined road to the school gates. Even the jam-packed Boston bag we all carried seemed lighter on his large frame.

"Don't you think so, Takumi?"

Toshihisa was looking for my agreement, or rather, my sympathy.

"It's not a big deal, is it?" I shifted my heavy Boston bag from my right hand to my left, "Spring break was just as many days long as usual. Would you rather move-in had been on Saturday?"

For a moment, he looked disappointed. "Don't be mean, Takumi."

I raised my eyebrows, "I guess." It was a thoughtless response. I wasn’t like Toshihisa, and spring break wasn't so fun that having it one day shorter upset me.

As usual, my parents treated me, their son who had come home for the first time in a long while, like I was some sort of bruise that it would hurt to touch. They fawned all over me, trying to bury their feelings of guilt. It was pointless, though. I'm too used to their ignoring me for the sudden gush of doting to be anything but bothersome.

Though months and years have passed since then, really, nothing has changed. For them or me. I don't think I can get myself to visit my older brother's grave this year, either, even though three years have already passed.

"Man, you're cold, Takumi." Toshihisa pouted, "You should have said 'oh, my poor Toshihisa-kun. There, there.' Or something." He scowled down at me. Toshihisa was a good 180cm tall and solidly built. I, on the other hand, was just a tad over 170cm, and medium build. Though the 10cm difference in height as well as the difference in build made him a little imposing, I replied.

"I'm not a kindergarten teacher. You're a big boy, turning 17 this year. Do you really want me to say something like that to you?"

"I do!"

"Hey..." He was being serious. "Maybe if you were the only one who thought like that here, but this time I have no sympathy for you."

"You're cold-hearted," Toshihisa glared at me, puffing his cheeks out comically in mock anger, though it was written all over his face that he was just sulking.

"There you go again, Toshihisa," I continued, half joking, "Unimpressive, apathetic, people-hater, clean-freak, nervous wreck, etc, etc. I'm so glad that I've gotten so many nicknames in just a year."

"Stop it!" Toshihisa cut in, "Stop it. Don't say that about yourself. I'm sorry I called you cold-hearted, even if I was just joking."

"I don't mind." And it was true, I didn't mind. I was very used to people not being able to understand me. What's the point of minding gossip now? I couldn't change the way I was, anyway. "Anyway, I knew you didn't mean it."

"But I'm sorry, anyway. There were other ways to say it."

"It's fine."

"I'm sorry, Takumi." Toshihisa apologized again, looking really sorry. For looking like such a brute on the outside, Toshihisa was surprisingly delicate. That's why I was able to comfortably share a dorm room with him for a year. In his own way, he essentially just followed my lead, despite me having so many problems with group living.

"People hate stubborn guys, Toshihisa-kun." I laughed lightly, dodging around the dejected Toshihisa and hurrying towards the gate.

This school, Shidou Academy High School, was an all-boys boarding school that seemed like it was just plopped down on the side of a forested mountain in the middle of nowhere. It was built back in the 1930s, at the beginning of the Showa Era, and was surrounded by a grove of trees (a private forest, really), and along with the row of cherry trees, it's said that no other school beats its natural beauty. In the past, only the sons of the upper crust could attend, but now they line up their desks with the children of your average citizen. The tuition is a bit higher than other schools, though.

Following along with the new 2nd and 3rd years, with their matching Boston bags, there were excited greetings flying back and forth. Well, except towards me. All I had was Katakura Toshihisa. Perhaps because of that, what I did get was a lot of persistent stares from the boys around me. Because I was Hayama Takumi.

With most things in this world, if they react differently than you expect, you simply accept it, but with people, there are times when it's the opposite. I was, to say the least, not the former.

Having been tormented and alienated such, it's amazing that I hadn't dropped out.

"You're really bad at expressing yourself, huh?"

I suddenly remembered this line that Gii had said.

Gii was really Saki Giichi. I was shocked. He had hit the bull’s-eye. In my astonishment, I just stared at Gii.

This had happened last year, right after the entrance ceremony. He was the only one, either before or after, that ever called my 'differentness' not 'strange', but 'not good at expressing myself'. Even doctors said that my personality was just warped. But I understood myself better than anyone. I just did things as I liked, and I'd never been taught differently. Basically, hiding my feelings and acting like nothing bad was ever going on.

Unfeeling, heartless, cold. I couldn't argue with being seen as that.

I just stood there, saying nothing, until Gii shrugged and ran off after his friends to play soccer.

And that was the end of that.

Though we were in the same class all year, he never spoke to me again, and he's really not someone I could approach easily.

Right from the beginning, he was the center of the class' attention. The complete opposite from me. Gii, who was forgiven everything and me, for whom everything went wrong. I thought it was ridiculous, but there was nothing I could do about it. It would be foolish to worry about trying to become more like him, and I was already used to giving up.

"Wait, Takumi. Are you mad?" Toshihisa was jogging after me, still upset.

"I'm not angry." I really thought it was amazing that I was able to meet a guy as nice as Toshihisa.

"Really?"

"Really. I hope we're in the same class again this year." When I said this, Toshihisa grinned.

"Me, too."

Bam. Suddenly, somebody ran into me from behind. Then, they staggered a few steps in front of me and made a show of falling over.

"Watch where you're going!" The guy yelled from the ground. It was a small, pretty boy with curled brown hair. The badge on his chest was red, so he was also a second year student like me.

"Are you all right, Takabayashi!? What happened?" Two second year students ran up and picked him up, acting like there had been some big accident.

Takabayashi? Ah, Takabayashi Izumi. Supposedly the 'prettiest' boy in our year. I'd heard that not only the upperclassmen, but also those in our own year treated him like a princess, or should I say a prince.

Now, Takabayashi Izumi raised his big, surprised eyes towards me, "He bumped into me on purpose, and he didn't even apologize!" He pointed his finger at me.

Huh?

"What!?" The boy's tone had risen an octave, "You shameless bastard! Apologize to Takabayashi! Ah, he just had his uniform cleaned, and now it's all dirty. You better reimburse him for it!"

"Takumi? What happened?" Toshihisa asked in surprise. I had no idea how to answer him. The one who did the 'bumping into' was Takabayashi. What on earth was going on here? Whatever it was, the situation was just getting worse for me. All of the students heading to the school had stopped walking and formed a crowd around the four of us. Everyone was looking at Takabayashi with sympathy and me with blame.

"Already? The year just started." I heard people muttering around us.

"I said apologize! Can't you hear, you bastard?" The boy yelled. He sounded proud, as though he thought he was showing me up, somehow. His tie was flapping loosely in front of his sloppily open blazer. He looked like a washed out yakuza. An underling, at that.

I didn't really get it, but I would apologize if I had to. If it ended this stupid standoff, that was enough.

As I opened my mouth to do so, a low, cold voice echoed around us, "Well, aren't you big and powerful, Yamashita Kiyohiko-kun."

A student separated from the crowd and walked towards us.

"Akaike Shouzou." Yamashita Kiyohiko clicked his tongue and muttered. His face said he was dealing with someone who he thought was trouble.

"As far as I saw, it didn't look like Hayama-kun bumped into Takabayashi. Hayama was the one walking in front, so that means..." Akaike Shouzou glanced at Takabayashi Izumi. Akaike Shouzou had such a calm and cold demeanor that it was hard to believe that he was also just a second year. He had been in my class the year before, and was Gii's best friend.

"What's this? Akaike-kun is standing up for this kind of guy? Takabayashi hummed through his nose and gestured towards me with his chin.

"I'm not standing up for anyone; I was just saying what I saw."

"Who do you think I am?"

"You're Takabayashi Izumi, right?"

Once he realized his charm wouldn't work on Akaike, Takabayashi turned tail and pushed his way through the crowd. Yamashita, who had been left behind, grabbed Takabayashi's bag. "Dammit! I'll remember this!" Even his parting words sounded like something a yakuza would say.

The crowd lost interest and began to disperse awkwardly.

"What a joke. It wasn't a big deal after all." Akaike Shouzou said to nobody in particular, before turning to me. "Hey, you don't have to apologize for things you didn't do, Hayama Takumi. You're the one who'll look like an idiot, you know." The harsh words came out easily.

"Yeah..."

"Next time, why don't you just try brushing off the ashes that blow your way?" And with that, Akaike Shouzou headed through the school gates.

"He's as tough as ever," Toshihisa sighed, "saying stuff I don't understand, about ashes and such."

"Yeah."

"But he saved you. You were about to take the fall for something you didn't even do. You should thank him."

"...Yeah." I agreed, but had no plans to actually do so. I'd rather he hadn't saved me. I wasn't the least bit thankful, really. I would have just gone along with the misunderstanding, if that ended the confrontation.

What was the point of objecting? I'd just stand there and let the ashes pile up on my head until they stop falling. It was too late to change everyone's minds, anyway.

"Hey, Takumi." Toshihisa called out from over near the notice board with the dorm and class assignments on it.

"What?"

"It'd be nice if your roommate this year can understand you."

"Huh?"

Toshihisa was grinning, "I mean, it's not likely we'll be roommates again this year. It's like they want to broaden our horizons or some such, because there's got to be a rule or something saying you can only share with a person once." His voice and smile were bright, but his eyes seemed worried. "Do you still not like being touched by people, Takumi?" 

I averted my eyes.

*****

Just as we thought, Toshihisa and I were in both different dorm rooms and classes. My new class was 2-D, and Toshihisa's was 2-B. My dorm room was room 305.

When I opened the door without knocking or anything, I got a bit of a shock.

"Sorry, I must have the wrong room."

"No, it's not the wrong room, Hayama-kun."

Akaike Shouzou. 

"Ah. Thanks for before."

Was I rooming with him for a whole year?

"No problem. I don't personally like being nosy, but there's someone in this school who loves to be, isn't there?"

"Huh?" What was he talking about?

Akaike had been sitting on the open windowsill, facing the door, as though he were waiting for me. "Don't just stand there. At least put your bag down. It's heavy, isn't it?" He said kindly. Maybe it would be ok sharing with him.

In any case, I put my Boston bag on the floor and wondered what was going on.

When I thought about it later, I realized that the scene earlier had been weird. When Akaike Shouzou had been dealing with Takabayashi Izumi and Yamashita Kiyohiko, he didn't have any bags with him. He walked into the school gates empty handed. So that meant that he had already dropped his luggage off in his room before coming. So why had he been there?

"Um... Akaike-kun..."

"Hayama-kun. I kinda decided for you, but can you use the left side of the room?"

"No problem, but..."

"All I needed was your ok. I was just asked to check that. And..." Akaike Shouzou hopped off the windowsill and reached out to touch my hair.

"Ow!" He groaned and grabbed the back of his hand.

All of my hair was standing on end. I bit my lip and glared at Akaike Shouzou as though I hated him. I was shaking. If I hadn't been holding onto the desk, I would have probably sunk to the floor.

"Hmm." Akaike Shouzou rubbed his hand, "I guess that hasn't changed, either."

"What are you talking about!?"

"I was asked to check if your Human Contact Phobia was still in effect. It seems it is."

"By who? And what do you mean by human whatever?"

"Our class president. He's the one who said you have a Human Contact Phobia."

"Why is the class president saying that? It has nothing to do with our class!"

"It sort of does, since he's your roommate, Saki Giichi."

"Eh...?" I was speechless. "You're not my roommate?"

"I'm here in place of Gii, who was called away by our teacher. Sorry I did something I knew you wouldn't like, but I think he's trying to cover his ass a bit."

He had a red mark on the back of his hand from when I slapped it away. "He's always making me do this kind of thing."

"Sorry about that, Shouzou."

Akaike Shouzou and I both jumped. Standing in the open doorway with his arms folded, was Gii.

"Oh, welcome back, Gii. You finished?" Akaike Shouzou smiled.

"You, too. If you're finished, you should leave." Gii seemed to be in a bad mood.

"Yeah, yeah." Akaike Shouzou headed out of the room, pausing only to punch Gii in the shoulder. "Now you don't owe me anything. Bye." He ran away quickly.

Gii glared after him in displeasure, rather than pain, and then turned towards me.

Gii seemed to have grown up somehow during spring break. His cheeks had lost a little of their boyishness. He had filled out. Grown taller. He looked gorgeous. I thought I could understand why he was so popular better than why Takabayashi Izumi was.

I gripped the desk harder.

Gii closed the door, "How was your spring break?" He asked.

"Ah, nothing special. It was long." It wasn't really an answer. I was still shaking, but I realized it wasn't just because of the shock I'd gotten.

"Nothing happened?"

"Nothing."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Hmm..." Gii’s eyes widened, as if the answer was unexpected.

His features had a depth to them that was unusual in a Japanese person. His eyes were a clear, light brown. Well, he was a quarter French. Also, he was born and raised in America. He had come from America last year to attend Shidou Academy.

Even I, who had no interest, had heard the rumors and gossip about Gii. But that was all I knew.

"Did you go back to the US, Saki-kun?"

"Call me Gii."

That stopped me in my tracks. I thought it would take quite a while to get used to calling him Gii.

"Oh, yeah. It seems like you had some trouble this morning, Takumi."

I was shocked. My heart seemed to stop. Takumi. No honorifics.

"Takabayashi may look like a doll, but he's a little brat. You should be careful." 

Gii's words flew over my head. My heart was racing. It was against the rules to suddenly call someone so familiarly, Gii! He had woken up something inside me that I had given up on. He made me remember the word 'possibility'.

Just that one line from Gii made me think that maybe Gii was the one person who could truly understand me. It made me, who had given up on being understood, hope.

There were alarm bells going off in the depths of my heart, warning me of the danger.

"Takumi, you're pale. You're shaking so much. Are you cold?" Gii came closer, looking worried.

"No." I backed away, shaking my head furiously, until I ran into the edge of my bed, and fell over onto it.

Gii walked over and quietly closed the window. The cold April mountain air was suddenly cut off. It was as if Gii had stopped the cold wind that people had been breathing here for ages.

"I'll go to the nurses' office and get you some cold medicine. You should lie down for a while." Gii left, without waiting for a response.

What should I do?

My heart was in disarray. He would probably regret being so nice to me.

But no, Gii was the type who interacted with everyone with the same carefree manner that he had me. He treated his friends dearly, and so everyone liked him. He was just being careful, because I was the roommate that he had to live with for the next year. He was a person who sincerely tried to get along with people, without causing waves.

I told myself that, over and over. I wasn’t used to being on the receiving end of people's good will, so I was afraid of misunderstanding.

"And why the hell am I in the same room as Gii, anyway?" I gripped the sheets tightly, "This is awful."

*****

I didn't really have an appetite. Lunch was ready in the cafeteria, but as though I was avoiding people, I came to the student hall next to the main school building. Not many students came here on weekdays, let alone weekends or special days like move-in day. From the dorms, you had to cross the entire school grounds, then walk around the school building itself.

I took a sip of my coffee in its paper cup and flopped down onto a comfy sofa. It was by the window, and the forest spread out below me. My vision was filled with green.

I felt like my turmoil from this morning was at least half a year's worth. How on earth was I going to room with Gii for a whole year? It would be easier if he thought I was a rude guy who ignored people's kindness. Toshihisa and Gii broke down my walls in entirely different ways. The privilege was painful. (And no, I didn't mean pleasant.)

I drank another sip of coffee.

"It's bitter."

The sliding door to the hall opened with a squeal, making me glance that way. A blue badge, so he was a third year. I thought I had seen him somewhere before.

He looked around the hall, and when he saw me, he grinned as though he had finally found me after searching a long time.

What the...?

"Hey, may I sit here?"

I made a show of looking around, "There are lots of other seats open." I answered. In fact, only a few seats were taken.

"Are you waiting for someone?"

That's not the point.

"There are other seats free." Maybe he hadn't heard me.

"If nobody is coming, I'll sit here." With that, the third year sat down across from me. He was like a salesman who wasn't meeting his quota (annoying and persistent.) "There’s an interesting rumor going around, but you don't seem to know about it." He said.

"A rumor?" Apparently, he hadn't heard the rumor that I wasn't interested in rumors, though he obviously knew who I was.

"That's right. Do you know who I am?"

"Sorry, I don't." I turned the other way, and took a gulp of my coffee. I don't know any nauseatingly smarmy pretty boys.

"I'm Nozaki Daisuke, captain of the basketball team. Surely you know me."

The way he said it made me want to deny it, but... "I remember. I know who you are." I did, unfortunately, "You finished second in last year's Inter-high tournament."

"We'll win this year."

"Is that so?" As you please. Even his confidence was excessive.

"So, what about that rumor that you and I are dating?"

I almost spit out my coffee.

"What... What are you talking about?"

"The rumor started going around during spring break."

\----- Nothing happened? Really?

So this was why Gii kept asking me. Though it wasn't fair that Gii, who was in America, had heard the rumor, and I hadn't. Also, it explained why I felt like people were staring at me this morning. They had reason to be more interested than usual.

"Sorry to bother you." I said, "If you leave it alone, the rumor will die out." They say rumors last 75 days, but at Shidou, it's more like 2 weeks.

"It's not a bother." Nozaki Daisuke smiled with his sweet, pretty face (I prefer salty rice crackers to cake) and said, "I've wanted to meet you for a while. I don't know who started the rumor, but I'm grateful."

"Really?" You have bad taste, Nozaki Daisuke. I almost said it out loud, but stopped myself. There's no need to put myself down like that.

"We'll, since I have this chance, I thought I'd go for it. How about it?"

"How about what?"

"You're slow..." Nozaki Daisuke reached out a hand towards me. I slapped it as hard as I could.

"Stop messing around!" I squared my shoulders and hurried off towards the grounds. "If I didn't have this stupid 'human contact phobia', I would have beaten the crap out of him for that!"

But Gii had named it well. 'Human contact phobia' sounded like a real disorder name. But really, it wasn't an illness. If I had to call it something, it was more of a conditioned reflex.

"At this rate, I'll never be able to get married, either."

There was a girl I had liked, though. We were both only in elementary school, but I imagined us married with a family, and we even talked about silly things like getting married when we turned 20. I knew nothing then. I knew nothing about good and evil, and dreamed a pretty dream that I would be happy someday.

Nozaki Daisuke. A grinning pretty boy. No matter how popular he was, he had no chance with me.

"And thanks to him, I lost my hangout spot!" I wandered aimlessly towards the center of the grounds. I felt like stomping and kicking today.

*****

"Takumi, pick it up higher, we can't move it like this."

"I couldn't, even if I wanted to. I'm at max power."

"You suck..."

Toshihisa looked at me with half-hearted disdain from the far side of the dresser, "Let's try again. And, up!"

"I'm the one helping you, you know."

"You say something?"

"Never mind. Let's go!"

The difference in our strength was as big as the difference in our size. Also, he's in a sports club. We were just made differently.

"There, got it. Thanks."

Now that the dresser was where he wanted it, Toshihisa wiped the sweat off his brow and collapsed onto his bed.

"You didn't really need to move it." I said, sitting down on the desk chair. My face was hot.

"It's easier to use this way." Toshihisa laughed, "I'm thirsty. I'm going to go buy a cola from the cafeteria. You want a coffee?"

"Yeah."

"Ok, wait here a bit." Toshihisa stood up and left the room.

"He's tough." I admired him. I was exhausted. If that were me, I would have just stayed lying on the bed. "That said, I'm just weak."

I came to Toshihisa's room after all. His roommate, Iwashita Masashi, was going to be a day late due to travel problems. (He was from a tiny island, and the ferry doesn't run if the water is choppy. It only takes half a day once you reach land, though.) Toshihisa was stuck doing everything on his own.

What was he going to do if Iwashita Masashi-kun didn't like this arrangement?

"Sorry for the wait." Toshihisa came back in just 3 minutes, "Here's your coffee."

"Thanks." It was his treat, of course.

"Takumi, you want to eat some fish cakes?"

"Huh?"

Toshihisa opened his Boston bag and showed me a plastic bag jam-packed with fish cakes.

"My mom was pestering me, saying to share them with everyone."

"They look good."

"Homemade." Toshihisa said proudly, "Doesn't your mom start pestering you about what to bring at the end of breaks, too? It's like this every time. It's not a field trip or class vacation, but I give up."

Somehow, his smile made me want to contradict him. "I have egg cookies in my room, if you want some."

Toshihisa seemed surprised, "Egg cookies? The ones that babies eat?"

"Yeah."

\----- Takumi-chan, you like these, right? I put them on top, so they won't get crushed.

All little kids like egg cookies, Mom, not just me.

"How nostalgic."

"I'll go get them, if you want some."

"I'll hold off for now."

Right.

Toshihisa grinned, and opened the plastic bag.

"Toshihisa, you have an older sister, right?"

"She's pretty. Looks nothing like me."

"Is it nice having a sister?"

"What do you mean?"

"Her existence."

"Huh?" Toshihisa's hands stopped as he thought, "I don't know. She's kinda annoying. In the morning, she's always complaining that my hair is a mess, my shoes are dirty or I missed a spot shaving. At night, it's all ‘did I do my homework, did I take a bath, did I put out my laundry’, like she thinks she's my mother."

"Heh."

"She's not even married, yet, at her age."

"How old is she?"

"22."

"She's still young."

"Is that young? She needs to do it while she still has her looks. Her face may be nice, but her personality is awful."

"I'll make sure to write, and tell her you said so."

Toshihisa gave me a look, and then we were both laughing.

"Please don't do that. She'd kill me. Here you go."

"Thanks." To me, the fish cakes all looked like little warm feelings of love from Toshihisa's mother, "They're good."

"Right? My mom's fish cakes are the best." Toshihisa was innocently happy about my compliment.

*****

There was a knock on the door.

I sat up from where I'd been dozing at the desk.

"Come in." Who was it?

"Sorry, Katakura-kun, but could you help... Oh, sorry." Yoshizawa Michio blushed when he noticed me. "Um, where is Katakura-kun?

"Someone from the archery club just called him out. He said it would only be about 10 minutes, so he should be back soon."

"Is that so? Well, then." He acted as though he was going to leave.

"I'll help, if I can."

Yoshizawa Michio was in the archery club with Toshihisa, but we were only passing acquaintances. The reason he blushed earlier wasn’t because he's interested in me, he's just really shy.

"I don't think you can..."

"Need someone strong?"

"I want to switch around the bed and dresser."

"You're fussy about the arrangement, too?"

Birds of a feather, I guess.

"No, not me..." Yoshizawa Michio mumbled, "Never mind. Bye."

"We'll come over when he gets back. What room are you in?"

Yoshizawa Michio blushed again, "Next door."

*****

"What a mess." Toshihisa said when we went next door later. There was luggage strewn all over the room, "There's not even anywhere to put your feet."

Yoshizawa Michio was the only one there.

"Who's your roommate?" Yoshizawa Michio smiled a little bitterly when I asked, "Seriously, who is it? There's no way this is all your stuff."

"Yeah..." He hung his head, troubled, "I don't know how he wants it, so I'm not sure how to straighten up."

"You should make him do it himself." Toshihisa said, with an air of disappointment that was rare for him.

"But he asked me to do it."

"You're a pushover, Yoshizawa." Toshihisa said, starting to clean up.

They really were birds of a feather. I'm just along for the ride.

Suddenly, the door opened.

"You aren't finished yet?" A cute voice said in amazement. It was said so imperiously, it seemed like we might actually apologize for a moment.

"Ah!" Toshihisa suddenly yelled. I crawled out from under the desk, where I'd been picking up some fallen notebooks, and was dumbfounded.

When our eyes met, he made a blatantly unhappy face.

Takabayashi Izumi. I see.

"Hurry up!" Takabayashi Izumi said to Yoshizawa Michio, ignoring Toshihisa and I, and slammed the door on his way out of the room.

"Wait, you...!"

"Stop it, Katakura-kun!" Yoshizawa Michio desperately stopped Toshihisa from running after him, "It's fine. I'm sorry I bothered you, Katakura-kun."

"Why are you the one apologizing, Yoshizawa?"

"Sorry..."

"I get it. Forget about the selfish brat, and let’s clean up!" He turned on his heel.

"Love is blind, huh?"

"Takumi, stop grumbling and help out!" 

I really wanted him to stop venting his anger on me.

*****

"Tomorrow is the opening ceremony. What a bummer..." Toshihisa was in a completely different mood than earlier in the day, mashing up his curry and rice dinner with his spoon.

"Stop that, Toshihisa. You're making a mess. It'll be fine."

"But..." Toshihisa grumbled, mashing his curry even more. Toshihisa wasn't in the mood to listen to my advice today.

It was the dinner rush in the dorm cafeteria. The entrance ceremony wasn’t until the day after tomorrow, so there should have been about a third fewer students than usual, but it was still crowded.

"It's a disgrace, I tell you, a disgrace." He'd said that this morning, too. "It's not fair that they decided while I wasn't there."

But it's not like they actually waited until he wasn’t there, or anything. They just happened to decide on the class president when we were busy straightening up Yoshizawa Michio's, or rather, Takabayashi Izumi's stuff.

"They drew straws?"

"Yeah, it's so irresponsible!"

It was basically a process of elimination. Everybody drew numbers, then decided what position they wanted. Toshihisa, the only one left over, was therefore the 'winner'.

"But if everyone thinks you'll be good for it, it should be fine. There's no do-overs, right?"

"Last year, I was only on the health committee for one term. I don't have the power to lead the class!" Toshihisa leaned back. I didn't really think it was such a big deal, though.

"You won't know unless you try, right?" I asked.

"I do, though. I'm not like Gii." Toshihisa took a huge bite of his food.

Just hearing Gii's name made my heart race. I've got it bad. I'd forgotten during the hectic afternoon. No matter what, I was going to have to see him again after dinner. However...

"Speak of the devil." Toshihisa glanced at the entrance of the cafeteria. Gii. Just coming in with Akaike Shouzou. Everybody was looking casually that way, as though that made it less intrusive.

"Hey, we meet again, Hayama Takumi." A sickly sweet voice came over my head.

Damn. Where the hell did he come from!?

"Can I sit next to you?" He sat down, as though it were a given that I would say yes.

Toshihisa opened his mouth in surprise. Ah, he knew about the rumor. Why hadn't he told me this morning?

"Takumi-kun, you like classical music, right?" Nozaki Daisuke asked. I turned my face away. At some point, Hayama-kun had become Takumi-kun. Unlike with Gii, this time it made me uncomfortable.

"Well, yeah." I didn't want him to come near me. I especially didn't want to end up slapping him in front of all these people. He really doesn't learn from experience.

"There's an orchestra concert at the culture center in town the last Sunday of the month. I got tickets."

The tickets he lay on the table said row one. He's saying he got front row seats? Geez.

"Sorry, but I have no reason to accept this."

"I do, even if you don't. I'm asking you on a date."

Toshihisa was so shocked, he stood up. 

"You're asking me, a guy, out?"

"It's pretty normal here."

Idiot. There were far more rumors than actual couples.

"Let's go, Takumi." Toshihisa picked up his tray.

When I stood up, Nozaki Daisuke snapped at him, "If you want to go, go alone." He sure was sure of himself, even if he was a third year and the basketball captain.

Toshihisa just stood there, holding his tray.

"Takumi-kun, it'll take some time to get to know each other. I'm not asking for much, just to go see the orchestra together. You don't have any reason to turn me down, right?" It was a rhetorical question.

"You're coming on a little strong." He didn't even glance at the ticket I was trying to give back to him, "Don't you have basketball practice that day? You're going to win this year, right?"

"I'm spending some of that precious time on you." Nozaki Daisuke linked his fingers together and leaned back in his chair. It looked like he was posing.

"I get it. You don't think you're going to win, so you want to use me as an excuse." I said. Nozaki Daisuke sat up indignantly. "Anyway, jocks don't appreciate music, so you wouldn't enjoy it, even if we did go together." His expression darkened. "Since you are definitely a jock, I don't think you would even understand delicate classical music."

"Whoa, Takumi." Toshihisa said quietly, hinting that I'd gone too far. I didn't care.

"You... You're insulting me!?"

"Of course not. I'm just worried. If you fell asleep in the first row, I'm the one people would be glaring at."

"You bastard...!" Nozaki Daisuke said, standing up and kicking his chair out behind him. He picked up his plate of hot curry and threw it at me.

I closed my eyes and turned the top half of my body away as well as I could, protecting my left hand with my entire body.

The plate fell to the floor with a crash, the sound echoing in the stone cafeteria. As the scent of curry spread around us, the noisy cafeteria fell silent.

But I wasn't hot.

That's strange.

I was shocked when I opened my eyes. Nozaki Daisuke looked like he was frozen in the position of throwing the plate.

Standing in front of him, glaring in badly hidden anger, one sleeve of his uniform covered in curry, was Gii.

"Of course, the basketball captain has pretty good aim."

"I...I didn't mean to..."

"Doesn't matter if you meant to or not. What are you going to do about my uniform?"

"I'll pay for the cleaning."

"Of course you will!" I'd never seen Gii look so angry, "Are you stupid!? Think before you act! This is just my uniform, but if that had hit skin, it definitely would have burnt! Don't think 'it's only curry'! You should have realized that, at your age!"

Nozaki Daisuke was frantically looking back and forth between us.

"But... But, we're good, yeah?" He grinned and slapped Gii on the shoulder.

"As long as you're accepting responsibility." Gii agreed lightly, "Let's take it outside."

Nozaki Daisuke was then led outside.

As soon as they went out the door, the crowd that had been watching with bated breath broke into commotion.

"Damn, Gii's awesome. He back talked to a third year." Toshihisa groaned with emotion, "He just keeps getting better and better."

Gii didn't even glance at me. He had to have known that that curry was meant for me.

"But who gets to clean this up? The one who made the mess left, but we can't just leave it like this, right Takumi?"

Akaike Shouzou caught my eye from where he was lined up to return his tray. He was watching the door with a wry, lopsided smile.

\----- "There's someone at Shidou that loves to be nosy. It gets old pretty fast." So, he meant Gii?

"Hey, Takumi? You listening?"

"Toshihisa, you clean that up."

"Me!? Huh? Hey, Takumi!" I ran out of the cafeteria.

Ah, that's right. I'd never felt so thick-headed. Gii had protected me. I'm not sure how or why, but no matter how you look at it, there was no way that Nozaki Daisuke could have 'missed' me from that close. He is the basketball captain, after all.

It was six, so it was already getting dark out. I looked around, but I couldn't see Gii or Nozaki anywhere.

"Maybe they went to the dorm." I ran towards the dorm, which was only a couple dozen meters away from the cafeteria. My heart was racing, and not only because I was running.

Gii had protected me without anyone - well, anyone but Akaike Shouzou - noticing. If the nosy person that Akaike Shouzou had mentioned was in fact Gii, then he was involved in the scene this morning, too. Or rather, he was the one who pointed Akaike Shouzou my way.

"But why?"

Why, indeed. There was no reason for him to go that far for me.

"Hayama-kun!" I stopped when I heard my name called, but I couldn't see anyone.

"Maybe I was hearing things."

"Hayama-kun, over here." The brush on the side of the path rustled. It was too dark to see well, but someone was standing there. "I want to talk to you about Saki Giichi-san."

"About Saki-san?" What could it be?

It happened when I took a step towards the brush. There was a dull sound, and a sharp pain in the back of my neck. I saw flashes of light, and the world started swaying.

My legs collapsed under me, but I couldn't grab onto anything to catch myself.

\---- Gii...

Through my fading consciousness, I felt like someone was calling me from far away.

*****

"O...w!" I woke up to a stabbing pain. There was a dull, heavy pain radiating from my head to my shoulders.

I was hit by something. It was like a crime suspense drama on TV. Of course, they're only pretending to get hit.

Reality sucked.

When I opened my eyes, it was pitch black. I could smell the distinctive scent of old, decaying wood.

Where was I? I could move around freely, but considering that I had been knocked out, it couldn't be a great place.

The air was cold. So was the floor. My left side, however, was a little warmer.

"Does it hurt?"

"Yeah, a l..." I tried to say it hurt a lot, but the words wouldn't come out.

"You finally came to. You were completely limp, so I was worried you might be dead. Thank goodness!"

Huh? Huh? Huh? This voice, it was Gii!?

Gii wrapped an arm around my shoulder and hugged me tightly.

An unpleasant chill ran down my spine. The next moment, I pushed Gii away with all my power. There was a loud thunk.

"Ow ow ow!!" Gii whined.

"Ah! I'm sorry!!"

"If you're going to apologize, don't push me in the first place. You suck." Gii smiled bitterly in the darkness. "Well, I guess you're feeling well enough I can stop worrying."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." It sounded like it had hurt.

"It's fine. It's my own fault for touching you, with your 'human contact phobia'." He seemed like he actually meant that.

It's interesting what you can 'see' when you can't actually see someone.

"Enough about me. Does your neck still hurt?"

"I'm fine."

"I see..." Gii sighed in relief, pulling a matching sigh from me. I had been tensed up, but not really in a bad way. I mean...

"By the way, where are we?"

"The music hall."

"You mean that music hall?"

"Right. The one we've heard rumor of, but nobody's ever used."

Once my eyes were used to the darkness, I could see that we were indeed in a large room with a piano in the center. There were benches arranged around the piano, and mountains of old broken desks and chairs by the walls. I wasn't sure if it was just a design point or for better acoustics, but there weren't any real windows in the building. There were just some small openings near the ceiling to let light in.

It may have been quite modern when it was built, but it had aged a lot, and it hadn't been used at all for a few years. As a bonus, it was really far from the other school buildings, and as it was in the middle of the woods, was completely overgrown with weeds. They had trapped us in a hell of a place.

We couldn't get out from the windows, and as decrepit as it was, the walls were still too strong to break down. The one double door didn't look like it would just open if we pushed on it.

But why was Gii here?

"Um... It might be a silly question, but..." Gii turned to listen to me when I spoke. He was leaning on the thick leg of the grand piano. That's what he had hit!?

That must have hurt. I was causing him all sorts of trouble. The fact that he had to share a room with me, then the curry thing. I never imagined he would ever protect me, though. He's not obligated to.

"So, what was your silly question? Don't start talking, then suddenly stop, Takumi."

"Oh, sorry." I kept apologizing, "We're locked in here, right?"

"The door won't open, so yeah." Gii answered casually.

"Also, why are you here, Saki-kun? And why was I attack... Ah, I get it." I remembered! Yamashita Kiyohiko's final words. "But it would be hard for one person to trap us both." 

"What are you mumbling to yourself about?" Gii was on all fours, getting ready to crawl over towards me. I reflexively scrambled back, but I ran into a wall. What should I do? I couldn't run away!

"I said, he couldn't have done it alone!" I yelled.

"Huh?" Gii looked surprised, “You haven't been making any sense. Don't decide everything by yourself. Let’s talk properly, taking turns. I can't join the conversation this way."

"Um, I was saying, Yamashita-kun..."

"Ah." Gii clapped his hands once, "I see. I get it."

He did? From what I just said?

"You meant that Yamashita didn't trap us in here by himself, right?"

He really did understand. How was he such a great guy?

"And I don't know why you're here, Saki-kun." There's still a lot that I don't know, Gii.

"Call me Gii." Gii smiled, "The reason is simple. I saw you getting hit while I was on my way back from the dorm. When I went to help, I was caught, too."

"You were?"I don't believe it. "I heard the story about how you took on three tough thirds years by yourself last year."

"Sorry to say, there were four of them. Three would have been better." Gii said jokingly. But was he really joking? At this kind of time?

"Um... Also... The thing with Nozaki-san..."

"Ah. He gave me the cleaning money. I changed my clothes, too, so the matter is settled."

"That's not what I meant, though now that you mention it, you don't smell like curry."

"I'm wearing a Yankees starters’ jacket now." Gii said proudly.

"I can't see it in the dark." As soon as I said it, I got a bad feeling.

"I see. I'll make it easier to see, then." Gii started coming closer again. This was a problem.

What should I do? My heart was racing.

"M...more importantly than that, we need to find a way out of here."

"There's no way out. That door may be old, but it didn't even budge when I threw my weight at it or hit it with a chair." Gii's movement was disturbing the air around me. I could feel his breath when he spoke. He was right in front of me, and I couldn't move back any more.

"But if we stay stuck in here, we'll starve to death. We were in the middle of dinner."

"I hadn't even had one bite yet."

"Then we need to get out of here quickly..."

"The ones who did this were Takabayashi's lackeys. ------Don't run away." Bam! The walls sounded as Gii slammed his arms on either side of me. I really couldn't run away like this.

I could clearly see Gii's expression in the dark. His eyes were looking straight at me. I hung my head.

"Saki-kun, move your arms." My voice was shaking. I'm sure he could tell.

"The reason the guys went after you this morning is because of me."

"Eh...?" Surely not.

"It was because Takabayashi found out that I like you, Takumi."

I couldn't believe my ears. It was such a shock; I couldn't even really comprehend what he had said.

"Takabayashi told me a while ago that he wanted to go out with me, but I told him that I couldn't go out with someone I didn't care the least bit about. Whether it was a guy or girl. I'm not sure how or where he found out, but he knew that I like you. So that's why he spread the rumor about you and Nozaki during spring break, and caused the scene this morning. I thought he might do something, so I've been watching out, for my own piece of mind."

"So that's why Akaike-kun..."

"I wanted to protect you myself, really. ----Don't run away!"

But Gii, you're saying crazy things. Nobody has ever said they wanted to protect me before.

"But, Saki-kun, Takabayashi is much prettier than me, more popular, and he doesn't have this phobia..." Bam!

"Don't be stupid!" He hit the wall right next to my head. I cowered in surprise. "All right, listen carefully. I like you, Takumi. Nobody but you. I don't care if I starve or freeze to death here. Screw dinner. ----I don't want to regret anything. I like you, Takumi."

I couldn't move, like I was paralyzed. I felt Gii's breath on my lips.

"I like you..."

The whisper faded into a sweet breath, which escaped as his lips met mine.

Gii's arms slowly moved from the wall to embrace me. Strong arms. You're stronger than you look, Gii.

"You don't dislike me, right?" Gii asked worriedly, separating our lips.

I’ve always really, really admired you.

"You don't, right?" Gii said, kissing me again.

*****

"It's pretty inconvenient that this place is soundproofed." Gii was sitting about a person's width away from me, arms around his knees. He looked at me sideways, "Sorry about that." He apologized. 

"It's ok. It's just a conditioned reflex." I was laughing, but my body was really tense.

I didn't hit him, but when I seemed uncomfortable during the second kiss, Gii moved away to give me some space.

Gii was really nice.

"More importantly, Saki-kun, what should we do now?"

"That's right." Gii pressed his thumb to his chin, and stared off into space. "Dying would be a shame, now that our feelings are mutual."

I laughed a little, unconsciously. 

It almost seemed like Gii was enjoying this situation. I had the feeling that if I was with Gii, anything could be solved easily.

"Laughing doesn't change anything." Gii smiled.

"Huh?"

"What time is it? Nine? The cafeteria is closed, then. Takumi, which carries further, voice or piano?"

He changed the subject so quickly, it was hard to follow.

"Umm, a really strong voice will carry maybe 300 meters, but an average one would be impressive if it carried 100 meters."

"What about a piano?"

"Well, it's better than my voice, at least."

"Ok, that's decided." Gii stood up, and turned to the grand piano.

"What's decided?" I followed him, confused.

"Oh, it's locked. Takumi, can you do something?" Gii was examining the keyhole on the lid.

"It won't open if it’s locked."

"You can open it without a key, though, can't you, Takumi?"

........?

"I'm going to break that window, so I'll leave the piano to you." Gii left with a wink. What was he planning?

I moved to stand in front of the piano. I hadn't touched a piano in years. I had only studied piano half-heartedly, and after I quit and entered Shidou, I hadn't been within a one meter radius of one. Really, there shouldn't have been anything that even hinted that I could play the piano. Gii, however, had said that like he knew I could. ----Why?

But now wasn't the time to worry about that. Luckily, I was still in my uniform. I took my student handbook from my blazer pocket, and shoved the hard paper into the gap between the piano and cover, sliding it hard to the right.

The tumbler opened with a loud click.

Gii, who had been watching, smiled.

\----Honestly, I was surprised. It was a lovely smile, lit by the moonlight streaming in the windows.

He climbed up on the piano bench and started hitting the window with a chair. The glass broke, noisily. Gii continued breaking windows, then came over to me.

"Ok, now we're ready. What are you going to play, Takumi?"

You couldn't really call it a song. My fingers were stiff, and the humidity had caused the keys to stick, taking a really long time to come back up after being pressed.

But, will this sound really carry to the dorm? And will anyone notice it?

"What's wrong?" Gii asked when I stopped playing, "Are you tired?"

"That's not it." I'd been playing all the songs I remembered for about thirty minutes, but nothing had changed outside. And as a bonus, there was cold mountain air coming in through the broken windows.

"Are you giving up?" Gii easily stabbed me in the heart with his words.

That was sharp, Gii. He, without any difficulty, put into words the feelings that I couldn't even really grasp.

"What if," I folded my hands on the keyboard, "the ones who hear the music are those lackeys?"

"If they make a move, Shouzou will notice." Gii's tone was sharp, but it wasn't blaming me.

"And if nobody hears it? Even Akaike-kun is locked in because of curfew."

"In any case, those guys will make a move." Gii said matter-of-factly, "And if anybody does, we'll be saved."

"How do you know that?" I was getting irritated, "If they ignore it, and we spend the night here, with as cold as it gets at night here, they'll find two frozen bodies in the morning."

"So, you aren't going to play because of that?" He folded his arms in astonishment, "There's no way those guys want us to freeze to death. They don't have the guts. They probably just think we'll get naked and 'share our body heat' or something. So I don't think they'll make a move too quickly."

"Why!?" I clenched my fists, "Why!? You keep talking like you know everything! And me, quit acting like you know me! You know nothing about me! And you shouldn't!"

"Takumi."

"I'm an outcast! I'm so slow to hear things that I hate it. I know nothing about you or any of our classmates! But neither do you! Stop talking like you know everything. It's irritating! Don't mess around with me!"

"Takumi, you can take a break if you're tired."

"That's not it!"

"----If you're cold, wear this. It's not good to let your shoulders get cold." Gii took off his starters’ jacket and put it around my shoulders. "You can have it for a while."

Gii was only in a thin sweater. Oh, Gii.

"I'm not cold." I gave back the jacket. "That's not it. Sorry. I'm sorry, taking it out on you...."

"It's ok. You're just wound up. It's understandable, considering the situation we're in. Are you sure you aren't cold?"

"I know I go overboard sometimes, but even though they're my own feelings, I can't change them at will." It was a desire that wouldn't be fulfilled. Was I wrong to want it, or was it wrong that it wouldn't happen?

I just wanted to be loved. Just like everybody else. Only that. Nothing special. Children all want it. It would all be settled if Gii gave up. Gave me up, that is.

"I think everyone feels that way." Gii said.

I looked up at Gii, as if drawn to.

"Everyone?"

Everyone....?

"Even I get irritated when things don't go right. I fail, and I regret things. But if you give up, it's all over. The End. No more. Right?" Gii looked me straight in the eyes and smiled softly.

Gii had a really kind smile.

It threatened to melt right through my selfishness.

"Glad that's over." Gii slouched down at the edge of my vision.

"It would be easier to give up, though, Gii." My voice was trembling and hoarse. Denial was burning in my throat, trying to fight its way out.

But I didn't want to give up. I really didn't. I just don't know how not to. Nobody taught me how to not give up. Nobody ever just caught me up in their arms. ----Gii.

As though he had heard my silent complaint, Gii nodded and said, "That's right." He leaned over, and hugged me with all of his power. "That's right, Takumi."

Gii pet my hair, like a mother comforting a child. Over and over again. Gii's warm hand was like a magic spell that melted my heart bit by bit.

\----But should he be comforting me here?

"Takumi...." Gii called softly. My eyes were closed still, but I felt Gii's breath on my lips. At that moment, there was a banging on the door. Gii and I jumped and turned towards the door.

*****

"What do you think you were doing with school property? There's a limit to fooling around. This isn't the place to play hide and seek."

The dean of students, Shimada-sensei, had been berating us for an hour.

"But this time, it was a matter of life and death, and these two were the victims...." Our homeroom teacher spoke up in our defense, but...

"Whatever the reason, the damage remains. It's even worse if it was just a game." Shimada-sensei was unforgivingly severe. He looked at me, Gii, and Akaike Shouzou, who was standing a bit away from us. "I want you to know that's how we'll be treating it." With that announcement, he turned and started down the path to the faculty dorm.

"Please wait, Shimada-sensei!" Our homeroom teacher ran after him, stubbornly. Thatta boy. "The path is dark! Take my flashlight!"

\----In the end, we were in the same trouble as before.

"Well, we're screwed." Gii laughed bitterly, "Having a big shot come down here." He put both hands in his pants pockets and kicked a piece of broken glass. It flew into the shadows and made the brush rustle a bit.

The music hall looked much more rustic from the outside, but the disordered interior was honestly a bit scary, like it belonged in a horror movie.

"Couldn't be helped. Shimada-sensei is the one who has the key to the music hall." Akaike Shouzou said, not the slightest bit comfortingly, "Huh? Now that I think of it, how did those lackeys lock you guys in here in the first place?"

"Being in charge of the key doesn't mean he was guarding it." Gii said, sitting on the edge of the semicircular stoop.

"I see." Akaike Shouzou smiled, sitting down beside him.

It was Akaike Shouzou who had come to the rescue after all.

"I was a bit surprised that you went missing, too, Gii." Was the first thing he said. Then, he looked over at me. "Didn't think we would be treated to a best hits album here at Shidou. I'd like to hear the second to last one again, on a better piano." He said light-heartedly.

Akaike Shouzou's face was red, despite the cold. He was probably running around looking for us all over the huge Shidou grounds. Gii was blessed in his friends, too.

The wind ruffled my bangs.

"Aren't we going back to the dorms?" I asked, wrapping Gii's jacket tighter around my neck, I hated the cold. Gii was proud of his resistance to it. That's why he was fine in just a thin sweater.

"Stay here a while." Gii said, beckoning to me. I sat down, as invited. Akaike Shouzou glanced at me over Gii's shoulder.

"Are you ok, being that crowded?" He asked, worriedly.

"Shouzou, you may think we should put some space between us, but this level of closeness is good for us." ---Right? Gii seemed to ask. I nodded vaguely.

"Hmm. A breakthrough. Congrats. I think you found the trick for making this year go well." Akaike Shouzou laughed teasingly. "By the way," his tone turned serious, "how do you want to deal with this?"

"Takabayashi Izumi didn't have a hand in this."

"What?"

"If he did, he wouldn't have locked me and Takumi up together, don't you think?"

"Hmm..."

"More importantly, what did Shimada-sensei say just now?"

"Well, I told him that it was a game that had gotten out of hand, so that's what he was talking about."

"That was smart." Gii rested his chin on his knees. "The punishment level for a joke versus actually trapping us is quite different."

"Wait a minute." I said, surprised. "It sounds like you're trying to make their crime lighter."

"That's right." Gii admitted lightly.

"I was hit!" It had really hurt. "And you were, too, right?"

"They didn't really mean it."

"But a surprise attack is cowardly!"

"Yamashita and them were cornered. They did hit us, but they didn't tie us up or guard us, right?"

"Why are you standing up for them?" I didn't get it.

Gii's shoulders drooped. "Didn't you know? One-sided love is painful." He said, "Takumi, it's not like those guys wanted anything bad to happen to us. They aren't a lynch mob. It was probably mostly to get back at you for this morning, but it's really about Takabayashi Izumi. They want Takabayashi to give up on me."

"I don't get it." I said.

"What I'm saying is they want the exact opposite of what he does. Even Yamashita was just reluctantly following his orders. They're like his loyal bodyguards. They like Takabayashi. So why do you think they would help get me and Takabayashi together?"

"But they did help." The thing this morning was a case in point. So was me being hit. "It turned out like this because you saw me being attacked, but if you hadn't..."

"That's true..." Gii put his hand on his chin and pressed a finger to his lip. It looked a little pretentious, like an actor I'd seen in an old black and white movie. I don't remember the title or actor's name, though.

"Whatever." Gii clapped his hands on his knees carefreely. "Even if it comes to light, Yamashita and them won't be immediately expelled. We should be gracious about it."

"Shall we leave it alone, then, class rep?" Akaike Shouzou asked amusedly.

Gii sat up straight, "Not everything in this world can go exactly as you'd like. If you set traps for people, it'll come back to bite you in the ass. You get it!?" Gii suddenly shouted at the brush where he had kicked the glass earlier.

"----!!" My entire body had stiffened, and I couldn't move. I hate occult stuff.

"Shouzou, go! Get him!"

Akaike Shouzou, like the great friend he was, was moving as soon as Gii started speaking. Gii, of course, wasn't on the stoop any more, either.

"Stop, you!"

The shadows became three body-shaped blobs moving in the dark.

"No! Let go!"

I know this voice... Ah.

"Takabayashi Izumi!?" I shouted without thinking, clasping my hands over my mouth afterwards. Takabayashi Izumi was lying on his back in the brush, where he had been pushed down by Akaike Shouzou. He was glaring at me in dislike. There was a challenging, yet somehow sad expression in his eyes.

"What were you doing over there?" Gii's voice was cold.

"You're great, Gii. You knew I was there." Takabayashi said simperingly, "Move, Akaike Shouzou. How long do you plan to sit on me? Or does it feel nice on top of me?"

Akaike Shouzou stared at him in shock, "You are NOT a guy, I swear." He moved away.

It occurred to me later that they were talking about rather extreme topics quite casually. Oh, dear.

"And what were you doing alone with him, Gii?" Takabayashi Izumi stood up, brushing the dust off his clothes. "It doesn't seem like nothing happened." He was staring at Gii's starters' jacket, which I was still wearing.

"It's none of your business." Gii said blankly.

Takabayashi looked up at him with an unreadable expression, like a passenger when a bus door closes right in front of them, before they can get on.

"I guess this is what they mean by 'unapproachable'." He curled the corner of his mouth in amusement. "You're always like that, Gii. You're cold. Completely fine hurting people, and saying it's their fault they let it hurt them."

"I'll forget the scene this morning. And the one tonight. Tell Yamashita and the others." Gii looked prepared for an onslaught. Prepared and expressionless, like a mask. Even so, there was a strength in him. "----However, it's a different story if anyone does anything to Takumi again."

Takabayashi Izumi just hummed. He casually put his hands in his pants pockets and walked past Gii and Akaike Shouzou over towards me.

"Hey, Hayama Takumi-kun." Takabayashi Izumi tossed his head, as though to get his long bangs out of his eyes. "Being protected by Gii makes you safer than if you were in a fireproof bank vault." 

He sauntered over and stopped a few steps in front of me, pulling his hands from his pockets.

Something glinted in the moonlight as he raised his arm.

\----Eh!?

"Takabayashi!" Gii jumped towards us.

Something hot ran across my brow.

Takabayashi Izumi's tear-filled eyes screamed 'Even now, I like Gii. I won't let you have him, not you!' He raised his arm again.

As though trying to intercept him, a body suddenly slammed into him from the side.

His small body went down easily. The person standing over him was breathing heavily. His hands were tightly fisted at his sides.

"You idiot!" He shouted, grabbing Takabayashi Izumi by the chest and delivering a resounding slap to his cheek.

Gii and Akaike Shouzou just stood by in astonishment.

Even I forgot the cut on my brow and was staring at them. ----I didn't believe it.

"Surely not..."

But it was.

Yoshizawa Michio was trembling with rage, "Apologize, Takabayashi. Apologize to Hayama-kun!"

That Yoshizawa Michio? Really?

But adding the honorific onto my name, even in this situation was just like him.

Yoshizawa Michio forcibly dragged Takabayashi Izumi over to stand in front of me.

"Apologize!" He said sharply.

Takabayashi Izumi looked stunned, but widened his eyes and did as he was told.

"I'm sorry." He apologized quietly.

A piece of glass fell from his hand to the darkness at his feet.

*****

"You're mean, Takumi. Leaving like that, and not coming back. It took me half an hour to clean up that mess." Even though he was complaining, Toshihisa was still putting some fish cakes into a plastic bag for me.

Everyone in the dorm had no idea what had happened tonight, so I had to act as if everything was usual. Speaking of which, when was lights out tonight?

"Is this enough?"

"Yes. ----I think so." I didn't know what Gii's appetite was like. If it wasn't enough, he could have my egg cookies, too.

The cafeteria was closed, and I felt bad for Gii only having something to drink, so I had come to Toshihisa's room to ask him to share his fish cakes.

"How are your neighbors?" I asked.

"What about them?" Toshihisa was surprised.

"Do you think they'll get along?"

"How should I know?"

That's true.

"What are you going to do with these fish cakes, anyway?"

"Eat them." I answered.

"Who will?"

"Who..."

"Surely, you're not giving them to Gii, are you?" Toshihisa's tone was sharp.

"What do you mean by 'surely'?"

"I'm worried about you, Takumi." Toshihisa moved towards me, and I backed away unconsciously. 

"I...is that so."

"Thinking about your situation this year makes my chest hurt with worry."

"Re...really?" What's this? Toshihisa was supposed to be straight.

"I didn't realize until we'd been separated." Toshihisa came closer. "You're really important to me, Takumi."

"Ah...th...thanks." I backed away again. ----It was a farce of hot feelings and fish cakes.

"What I'm saying is," Toshihisa held out his arm, "take this, too."

"Huh?"

"Use it to bribe Gii into getting along with you this year." Toshihisa said, bringing his hand to his brow in exasperation. "I feel like I'm your big brother. I can't take my eyes off you for a second...."

*****

"This is a masterpiece." Gii chuckled quietly, "You have a great friend in that Katakura." 

I was shocked when I got back to room 305. Gii already had a mountain of food on his desk.

"Where'd that come from?"

"I was buying a coffee from the machine in the lobby, and my stomach growled so loudly that I spilled it"

"Ah..."

Even so, Gii ate the fish cakes first.

"These are good."

"They're made with love. Toshihisa's mother's, that is."

"And yours is in there, too." Gii winked.

I remembered what had happened in the music hall, and moved over to my bed, flustered.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Gii was watching me from his seat, confused.

It was different in the bright light of our dorm room than it had been in the dark.

"You weren't done eating dinner, right? Come eat with me."

"I don't want any."

I was truly flustered, like a girl who had just gotten her first kiss. Gii's lips were moving as he spoke (of course they were). And the more they moved, the more I remembered kissing him. ----I kissed those lips.

"I'm tired. I'm going to bed."

"It isn't even eleven yet."

"Good night."

"Hey, you're still in your uniform. Aren't you going to change?"

"I don't mind."

"It'll get messed up."

"----Ah..." I'd forgotten that bit.

"If you're tired, you take a bath first." Gii gestured at the bathroom with his chin.

There's a lot that's inconvenient about Shidou, but there are natural hot springs, so each room has its own bath, that we can use whenever we want. That isn't usual, even at home.

While I got my change of clothes from the dresser, Gii turned back to the desk, or rather, turned his back on me, and started eating a piece of pound cake.

"Ok, I'll go first." I grasped my clothes and took the route furthest from Gii.

"I think Yamashita's group will break up." Gii let slip.

"Break up?" I stopped. "Why?"

"Just the feeling I had, looking at Takabayashi's face." Gii spun his chair around.

Our eyes met.

After the apology, Takabayashi had been dragged by the hand back to the dorm. I was surprised that he went without complaining.

"What did his face look like?"

"He looked happy. Like me, now." Gii stood up, smoothly, and moved in front of me.. "Takumi, you haven't responded yet."

"Responded to what?"

"I like you. What about you, Takumi?"

I like you, Gii, but I can't say it so easily. I'm afraid of what might happen once I do.

It was unthinkable for two lovers to live platonically.

"Move, Saki-kun."

"Call me Gii, Takumi."

I tried to go around him, but his arm blocked me.

"Don't be mean. Let me pass."

"I'm glad your cut wasn't bad."

I reflexively raised my hand to the Band-Aid on my forehead. In that moment of letting my guard down, Gii hugged me tightly.

That's not fair, Gii. He'd already figured out that 'here' is where I feel most safe.

"Don't run away, I beg you."

Eh....?

Gii sounded forlorn. ----Was he crying?

"You don't have to say you like me or anything, but at least call me Gii. ----Ok? Ok, Takumi?"

"----Gii...."

It was weird, seeing Gii look so helpless.

"Don't avoid me, don't run away, don't hate me, Takumi..."

I softly wrapped my arms around Gii's back. 

"Gii." I called softly, "Gii, I don't hate you. I don't hate you. Not at all. I'm sorry."

Gii's sweater was angora. It was fluffy and nice to touch.

"So do you like me?"

"I like you."

"Really!?" Gii let go of me. He was grinning.

"Gii! You tricked me!"

"Call me a technician. They say I have a miraculous rainbow voice."

"I take it back! I hate you!"

"Really? I'm glad."

"I said I hate you!"

"I love you." He whispered.

Gii stole a kiss at just about the same moment I slapped him.


End file.
